Blood Is Thicker Than Water
by Jude Rigby
Summary: A woman arrives in New York, claiming to be Karen's half-sister. How will Karen deal with this news?
1. Chapter One: Morning Surprise

A/N: This is my first Will and Grace fic and I haven't seen every episode, so please be kind in your reviews.  
  
Chapter One  
Morning Surprise  
  
Grace Adler was working on a sketch of a kitchen that she had been hired to decorate when there was a knock at the office door. "Come in," Grace said absentmindedly, erasing something.  
  
"Hello, I-I'm looking for Karen Delaney," a soft voice said.  
  
Grace looked up to find a young woman standing in the entrance to the office, and she was holding a little girl by the hand. "Oh, you must mean Karen Walker," she said to the woman.  
  
"Well, I suppose so, yes," the woman said, a British accent clearly evident.  
  
"She should be here soon," Grace said, not really believing it. "Who are you, by the way?"  
  
"Oh, my name is Katherine Riley," the woman said. "And this is my daughter Amber."  
  
The door to the office opened behind Katherine, and Karen walked into the office and over to her desk. She seemed to notice Katherine and her daughter and said, "What's going on Grace? Who's this?"  
  
"This is Katherine Riley," Grace answered. "She's looking for you."  
  
"Well you found me honey," Karen said, laughing. "Now what can I help you with."  
  
Katherine seemed to hesitate for a moment before saying, "Karen, I'm your half-sister."  
  
"What?" Grace blurted out before she could stop herself.  
  
"That's not a funny joke honey," Karen said, looking at Katherine, a look of annoyance on her face.  
  
"I'm not joking," Katherine said.   
  
"Hey Grace, want to-" Will said, coming into the office and stopping when he saw Katherine. "Hi."  
  
"Hullo," Katherine said softly.  
  
"Uh, Will," Grace said, walking over to him. "This is Katherine Riley, she says she's Karen's half-sister."  
  
"Really?" Will said with a touch of surprise. "Well, let me tell you right now, you should have stayed in England."  
  
"Oh, there was no way I could have possible done that," Katherine said, smiling softly. "I had to find you Karen. You see, you're the only family I have left besides Amber."  
  
"Who's Amber?" Will asked.  
  
"I am sir," the girl piped up from where she was standing.  
  
"Yes, Amber is my daughter," Katherine said.  
  
Karen suddenly stood up from her desk chair and walked up to Katherine. "Listen honey," she said. "I don't know who you think you are, but you are not my sister." With that she turned and grabbed her coat. "I'm going on my lunch break."  
  
"But it's only ten!" Grace cried.  
  
The office door slamming closed was her only reply.  
  
"Well..." Katherine began. She stopped and then her chest started to hitch with suppressed sobs.  
  
"Hey, it'll be okay," Grace said, walking to Katherine and putting her arm around her shoulder.   
  
"Yeah, in fact you may be better off if you just forget about Karen and go back to England," Will said.  
  
"I'd like that, but unfortunately, I haven't a place to live in England," Katherine said. "And I don't have that much money."  
  
"Maybe you should hire her as your assistant Grace," Will said.  
  
"Maybe we could help her find a job," Grace retorted. "maybe one that's she likes doing and is good at?"  
  
"Sounds crazy, but it could work," Will said, rubbing his chin in mock thoughtfulness.  
  
Katherine gave a small laugh and then said, "Why are you going to help me? I mean, we've all only just met a few minutes ago."  
  
"Because you're Karen's sister," Grace said.  
  
"You believe me?" Katherine asked, shocked.  
  
"Sure, if Karen just brushes you off like that, then you've definitely have to be her sister," Will said smiling. "Now why don't we all go out to a very early lunch? My treat."  
  
"I'll get my purse," Grace said. She hurried over to the work table and grabbed her purse.  
  
"Oh, that would be lovely, but we have our suitcase outside the door," Katherine said.  
  
"Well then we can just drive by your hotel and drop them off," Will said.  
  
"I don't have a hotel to stay at," Katherine said softly.  
  
"Then a friends house?" Grace asked.  
  
"I'm afraid I foolishly was expecting Karen to offer Amber and me shelter until I could get my own place," Katherine said sadly.  
  
"Well then you both can stay at my place until you get a job and find someplace to live,' Will said immediately.  
  
"Oh, no, no," Katherine protested. "I would want us to be a burden on you."  
  
"You two wouldn't be a burden," Will said. "Unless, you're against...um..."  
  
"You mean homosexual men?" Katherine asked, knowing what Will was trying to say. "No I have nothing against them. In fact, quite a few of my adoptive parents male friends were homosexual."  
  
"Well, it looks like you've got a new roommate Will," Grace said, smiling. "Now can we go?" 


	2. Chapter Two: Doubting Karen

Disclaimer: I don't Will and Grace or its characters. Only Katherine and Amber Riley are mine. Also I made up the magazine European Interiors and the 'Euro-Celtic' style.  
  
Chapter Two Doubting Karen  
  
Karen sat outside of Jack's apartment, waiting for him to bring out her  
  
coffee.  
  
"One mocha without whipped cream and one with," Jack said, coming out into the hallway and setting a cup and saucer in front of Karen. "So," he said, sitting down at the cafe table. "Why aren't you at work?"  
  
"Well, this woman came to the office and said she is my half-sister," Karen explained, picking up her cup.  
  
"Wow," Jack said in surprise. Then he thought for a moment and said, "Wait, why is that bad?"  
  
Karen sighed and said, "Because Poodle, she's probably after my money. I mean, you should have seen the outfit that she was wearing."  
  
"Why, what'd she have on?" Jack asked.  
  
"Some department store business suit," Karen said with disdain. "And she had on the ugliest boots too. It was really scary."  
  
"If it's a department store suit then yeah," Jack said. "So what did you tell her?"  
  
"I told her that there's no way she could be my sister," Karen said.  
  
"Good for you," Jack said. "What was her name?"  
  
"Katherine Riley, if that is even her real name," Karen said.  
  
"Wait, you mean Riley as in the Rileys of England?" Jack said, nearly dropping his cup.  
  
"Well, the woman had an English accent," Karen said.  
  
Jack suddenly jumped up from the table and went into his apartment.  
  
Karen stood up and followed Jack inside, a confused look on her face. "Jack, what's going on? What are you doing?"  
  
Jack, who was looking through a stack of magazines he had, said, "Hold on, I'll let you know what- Ah ha!" He pulled out a magazine and walked over to Karen.  
  
"Okay, I see that you subscribe to European Interiors," Karen said, looking at the magazine. "But I don't see what this has to do with that woman."  
  
Jack opened the magazine and flipped through the pages. "I thought that name was really familiar and then I remembered that I saw it in this magazine," he said. He stopped at a page and then held it out to Karen.  
  
"'Lord Tennyson Riley, newly instated as a knight, has moved into Clintonshire Castle in York and has had the castle redecorated in the new Euro-Celtic style,'" Karen read out loud. "I still don't see the connection."  
  
Jack didn't say anything, but he turned the page and pointed down at a picture.  
  
Karen took the magazine in her own hands and said, "That's her, the woman that came into the office."  
  
The picture was of Lord Riley, his wife and a son and daughter.  
  
"'Lord Riley, seated at left,'" Jack read aloud. "'Lady Eleanor Riley,  
  
seated at right. And the two Riley children, Robert and Katherine.' Karen, you do realize what this means."  
  
"What, that she's a spoiled British brat?" Karen said.  
  
"No, that she's not after your money," Jack said. "Karen, I think that  
  
she might have been telling the truth."  
  
"Oh Jack," Karen said exasperatingly. "I thought you were smarter than  
  
that! She can't be my sister, because she has a family. See look." She then jabbed her finger down at the picture. "There's her mom and dad."  
  
"But Karen," Jack said carefully. "Look at her parents and then look at her. Katherine doesn't look like them at all."  
  
Karen shoved the magazine into Jack's hands and then said, "I don't care what she looks like or where she comes from. All I know is that I don't have a sister!" With that she left the apartment.  
  
~~~  
  
Once inside her limo, Karen told Driver to go back to the penthouse and  
  
then she poured herself a large glass of scotch. She settled back into her  
  
seat, and thought about the Riley woman. She didn't want anyone to know, but she was so opposed to this woman being her sister because she knew that they would have the same mothers if they were related. And her relationship with her mother wasn't too loving.  
  
Karen also knew that it was probably true that Katherine was her half-sister. When she had been twenty one and in college, her mother had taken a trip to England. What was supposed to be a two month visit, ended up being a year stay. Karen had received letters from her mother during that trip, and she  
  
was sure that they mentioned the fact that her mother had gotten pregnant by some English man. She had kept those letters and that was why she was going home.  
  
When she got to the penthouse Karen ran into her room and pawed through  
  
the cedar chest that was in front of her bed. She kept all of the things she considered precious to her in there, but the letters from England had not been precious. She took out the letters, a small stack held together by a rubber band. Sitting down on the floor, Karen began to read each letter carefully, not wanting to miss the mention of a pregnancy.  
  
In the middle of the third letter, Karen read, 'I have some news, but I'm not too sure how you will react to it Kiki. A week ago, I met this really sweet Englishman in a bar. We got along really well and... I think that I may be pregnant.'  
  
When she read that, Karen crumpled the letter and threw it down angrily. She then went through the other letters, only stopping to read the date it was sent. When she got to the letter that was sent nine months after the third one, she took out the paper and read it.  
  
'Dear Kiki,  
I'm really hoping that you get this letter. I am dying to know if you are okay or not, I haven't heard from you in so long. Well, I know that you're probably wondering whether or not I had the baby. I did, a girl, but Kiki,  
  
the poor thing was stillborn. I'm simply devastated and I'll probably stay here for a little longer, just to be near the baby's grave. Paul... poor man, he was killed the other night by a mugger. I'm just glad that he didn't have to see his baby girl die.'  
  
Karen set down the letter. So the baby had died. Why was this woman pretending to be her half-sister and what did she think she could gain if Karen accepted her? 


	3. Chapter Three: Katherine Meets Jack

A/N: Thanks to Ericka for giving me my first review of this story! Glad that you like my style of writing and hope you'll keep reading!  
  
A/N #2: Sorry for the kind of lame chapter title, but I figured it describes what happens here best. And I'm sorry that this is such a short chapter, but I want to keep Katherine and Karen seperate for a few chapters if I can.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters. Only a few people are my own creation.  
  
Chapter Three Katherine Meets Jack  
  
"Okay, my place is right here," Will said, walking out of the elevator,  
  
Katherine, Grace and Amber behind him.  
  
"I just hope your apartment is big enough so we won't be a problem," Katherine said, picking up her suitcases and walking up to Will.  
  
"Hey, I lived in here for a long while and we never really got on each other's nerves," Grace said as Will opened the door and everyone stepped inside.  
  
Will glanced at Katherine as Grace went to the fridge and rolled her eyes.  
  
"I saw that Will," Grace said.  
  
Will looked up and saw that Grace was looking right at him. He gave her a sheepish grin and then led Katherine to the extra room he had. He then came back out and sat down on the couch next to Grace. "She's going to unpack a  
  
few things and then we'll go," he said.  
  
"What are we going to do Will?" Grace asked, facing him.  
  
"About what?" Will asked.  
  
"We need to somehow get Karen to accept Katherine as her sister," Grace  
  
answered.  
  
"Oh, now there's something I look forward to," Will said, leaning his head on his hand.  
  
The door to the apartment burst open and Jack came running inside. "Where is she, where is she, where is she!" he yelled.  
  
"If you're talking about Karen-" Grace started to say.  
  
"No, I mean Katherine Riley, where is she?" Jack said.  
  
Will and Grace exchanged a look and then Will stood up. "No way Jack,"  
  
he said. "Just go on back to your apartment."  
  
"What are you talking about?" Jack asked, a wounded look on his face.  
  
"Katherine doesn't need another person to put her down about being Karen's sister," Grace said, standing up too.  
  
"Oh, you guys think I'm on Karen's side?" Jack asked, a look of understanding on his face.  
  
"Uh, aren't you always Jack?" Grace asked.  
  
"Not this time," Jack said. "I know-"  
  
"I'm all finished unpacking for now," Katherine said, coming into the room. She stopped when she saw Jack.  
  
"Katherine," Will said, walking over to her and leading her to where Jack was. "This is Jack McFarland. My friend and... Karen's friend."  
  
Katherine paled and said, "It's nice to meet you."  
  
"Don't worry," Jack said. "I totally believe your story."  
  
"Thank you," Katherine said, visibly relieved.  
  
"Okay, now don't move," Jack said, and then he started walking around her.  
  
Katherine glanced over at Will and Grace, a confused look on her face.  
  
"Just stay still and don't move," Will said. "If you scare him, he'll go for your jugular."  
  
Katherine laughed while Jack gave Will a nasty look.  
  
"Anyway, before I was interrupted by chunky over there," Jack said. "I  
  
was just looking her over to see how much she looks like Karen. And I have to say that you don't really. I mean, auburn hair, blue eyes." Jack shook his  
  
head. "About the only thing you have like Karen is your ass." And with that he slapped her behind lightly.  
  
"Jack she's not Karen," Grace said.  
  
"I know that," Jack said, shrugging.  
  
"So that means that she'll slap you with a sexual harassment suit if you keep doing that," Will said. "That's something he and Karen do, Katherine."  
  
"I gathered as much," Katherine said, clearing her throat. "And I don't think you know much about genetics Jack."  
  
"Of course I don't," Jack said.  
  
"Okay, then I'll tell you right now that just because I don't have the same features as Karen," Katherine said. "Except for my ass, which you so kindly pointed out, doesn't mean that I'm not her half-sister."  
  
"Hey Will, let's go out for lunch," Jack said, turning to him.  
  
"In one ear out the other Jackie," Will said. "I'm taking Grace, Katherine and Amber out for lunch and if you behave like a gentleman then you can come."  
  
"Who's Amber?" Jack asked, confused.  
  
"Oh, my daughter, excuse me," Katherine said. She disappeared back into the room Will had given them. When she came back out, she had Amber with her. "Amber love, this is your Aunt Karen's friend Jack," she said.  
  
"Hullo sir," Amber said, staring up at Jack.  
  
"How sweet, she called me sir," Jack said, smiling. "I love this kid."  
  
"Come on, let's get out of here before Jack starts playing dress up with Amber," Will said.  
  
With that everyone left the apartment and went out to lunch. 


	4. Chapter Four: Katherine's Job

Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters. Only Katherine and Amber are mine and the magazine 'European Interiors.'  
  
Chapter Four Katherine's Job  
  
The next morning at eleven fifteen, Karen walked into Grace's office to  
  
find that it was empty. "Well," she said to herself. "Looks like I've got a free day." She turned and was about to leave when Grace came up in the elevator.  
  
"Sorry Karen," Grace said, walking over to her desk. "I had to go to Will's and help Kath..." She stopped before she could say anymore.  
  
"That woman is at Wilma's apartment?" Karen asked angrily.  
  
"Yeah," Grace said quietly.  
  
"And whose idea was that?" Karen said.  
  
"It was Will's," Grace answered.  
  
"It looks like I won't be going to his place anytime soon," Karen said.  
  
She walked over to her desk and sat down.  
  
"Karen, listen I really need to talk to you about Katherine," Grace said, walking over to her.  
  
"Just stay right there Grace," Karen said, pulling out her nail filer.  
  
"This is a place of business, not talking."  
  
"Okay, where did you put the real Karen?" Grace asked, looking around the office.  
  
Karen just sighed and started filing her nails. "Look honey, I just don't want to talk about her," she said.  
  
"And what, you're just going to ignore her?" Grace asked incredulously.  
  
"Yeah," Karen said. The room was silent for a long while and then she looked up at Grace. "What, is that a problem?"  
  
Grace grabbed a stool and set it next to Karen's chair. "Look Karen, I  
  
spent all afternoon with Katherine," she said. "And she's a very nice woman who wants very much to be your sister and to be in your life."  
  
"You mean she wants to get my money!" Karen yelled, putting down her filer.  
  
"Karen, I don't think she wants your money," Grace said calmly.  
  
"Oh?" Karen asked sarcastically. "Then why is she staying at Will's apartment? Answer that Grace."  
  
"She did tell us that she doesn't have too much money," Grace said. "But she's not greedy."  
  
Karen just shook her head and said, "Just forget about it Grace."  
  
Grace sighed and was about to say something else, but stopped. She got  
  
up from the stool and went back to the sketch of the kitchen she had been working on the day before.  
  
~~~  
  
At twelve thirty, Jack came into the office, Amber Riley with him. "Hello everyone!" he said.  
  
"Hey," Grace said distractedly.  
  
"Jack, why did you bring that woman's daughter?" Karen asked, seeing Amber.  
  
"I took her to sign up for school," Jack said.  
  
"You took her?" Grace asked incredulously, looking up from her sketch.  
  
"Oh, fine," Jack said exasperatingly. "Katherine took her, I just went  
  
along for the ride."  
  
"Where's Katherine now?" Grace asked.  
  
"She went to get a job," Jack said. "Which reminds me-"  
  
"Excuse me," Amber said, letting go of Jack's hand and walking over to Karen. "Will you come and visit me and my mother Aunt Karen?"  
  
"Listen kid," Karen said, standing up. "I'm not your aunt."  
  
"But my mummy said you were," Amber said, looking up at her.  
  
"Well your mom's a liar kid," Karen said.  
  
"Uh, Karen," Grace said, walking over to Amber and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you go out for lunch?"  
  
Karen grabbed her purse and coat and left the office without another word.  
  
"Come on Amber," Grace said, taking the girl's hand. She led her over to her worktable and lifted her up onto the chair.  
  
"Why is she so mean?" Amber asked.  
  
Grace smiled and said, "Here, why don't you color for a little bit." When the girl was coloring on a piece of paper, Grace turned to Jack and asked, "Why were you going to say earlier?"  
  
"Well, I guess you've never heard of Katherine Riley before she came here?" Jack said.  
  
"No, should I have?" Grace asked.  
  
Jack reached into the book bag he had been carrying, which was Amber's,  
  
and pulled out a magazine which he then handed to Grace. "I remembered this article, and I realized that Katherine wasn't after Karen's money like she thought," he said.  
  
Grace took the magazine and read the article quickly, and then looked at the pictures. "Wow, so she's the daughter of a lord and knight?" she said.  
  
"That's neat."  
  
"There's my grandmum and granddad!" Amber said, pointing to the picture  
  
of Lord and Lady Riley.  
  
"That's right Amb," Jack said, grinning.  
  
"Okay, so why did you show me this?" Grace asked.  
  
"Well duh!" Jack said, rolling his eyes. He took the magazine from Grace and said, "Didn't you read what it says in the article? Katherine redesigned the manor. You could hire her as a partner. Or something like that."  
  
"Amber," Grace said, turning to the young girl. "Does your mom like to  
  
decorate things?"  
  
"Yep," Amber said, concentrating on her coloring. "She decorated my new room when we were in England."  
  
"Well Grace?" Jack asked.  
  
"Okay, I'll go to Will's and ask her if she wants to work with me," Grace said. "God knows I could use a second person who will actually work."  
  
"Hi you guys," Katherine said, coming into the office.  
  
"Just the person we wanted to see!" Jack said. "How'd the job hunting go?"  
  
"Not well," Katherine said, walking to where Amber was sitting. "Every  
  
place I went they said I was overqualified."  
  
"Well, I've got a place where you can work," Grace said.  
  
"Oh? Where's that?" Katherine asked, interested.  
  
"Jack brought me this magazine and show me this article," Grace said, showing Katherine the article in European Interiors.  
  
"Ah yes," Katherine said, taking the magazine in her hands. "I remember when they came to look at the manor."  
  
"I looked at those rooms and they are very well done," Grace said. "And I would like to hire you to work here, as my partner."  
  
Katherine was silent for a long time. Finally, she looked up at Grace and smiled. "I would be honored to be your partner, but," and here her smile faltered. "How could I work here while Karen does as well?'  
  
"Karen shows up for about three hours a day," Grace said. "And I'll be  
  
here to make sure that she doesn't get to mean with you."  
  
"Come on Kat," Jack said, seeing the look of doubt on her face. "You'll have a lot of fun working here I bet."  
  
"Alright," Katherine said, sighing. "I guess I could do worse if I looked for a job elsewhere."  
  
"Great," Grace said, smiling. She held out her hand to Katherine. As they shook hands she said, "Welcome to Grace Adler Designs." 


	5. Chapter Five: Karen's PI

A/N: I'm not sure what the name of the private investigator that Karen hires is called on the show, so I made up the name.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters.  
  
Chapter Five Karen's Private Investigator  
  
"Hey Kare," Jack said, walking into the media room of Karen's penthouse.  
  
"Hi Poodle," Karen said, putting his glass of wine down. "What's the news, why are you here?"  
  
"Well I've got some good news and some news that's bad for you," Jack said.  
  
"Good news first then Jackie," Karen said.  
  
"I finally got that pair of shoes at Barney's that I showed you the other day," Jack said, grinning.  
  
"And the bad news?" Karen asked smiling.  
  
"Katherine is going to be working at Grace's office," Jack answered, bracing himself.  
  
Surprisingly, Karen didn't say anything at first, but grabbed her glass  
  
of wine and took a long sip. "So she's managed to get a job at Grace's office," she said slowly. "What will she be doing?"  
  
"I think she's going to help Grace decorate stuff," Jack said, shrugging. He was a little uneasy at Karen's reaction. "What's wrong Karen?"  
  
"Wrong? Nothing's wrong Poodle," Karen said. "I'm just fine."  
  
Jack gave her a disbelieving look. "Listen Karen," he started to say, when the grandfather clock in the penthouse chimed three. "Oh, I have to go. I'll see you later Kare."  
  
"Sure," Karen answered. Once Jack had left the room and she heard him call good-bye to Rosario, she picked up the cordless phone and dialed a number.  
  
"G. R. Private Investigator," a gruff voce said, answering the phone.  
  
"G. R., it's me," Karen said.  
  
"Oh yeah," G. R. said. "What can I do for you today Miss D?"  
  
"I have someone I need you to find out about," Karen said. "But you'll  
  
have to go to England."  
  
"No problem Miss D," G. R. said. "I've got an associate over there. What's the name?"  
  
"Katherine Riley," Karen answered. "The Katherine is spelled with a K."  
  
"Okay, now it's going to take a week to get some stuff on this lady," G. R. said. "I'll call you once I get something."  
  
Without saying good-bye, Karen hung up the phone. She trusted G. R. and was sure that he would find out who this Katherine Riley really was. For now though, she would have to suffer being in the same room with that woman. Oh well, she could make herself endure it. After all, she had been married to  
  
Stan for all those years.  
  
~~~  
  
Will was at the table eating a bowl of cereal when Amber came into the room wearing her school uniform. "Morning Amb," he said as she walked to the kitchen.  
  
"Good morning Uncle Will," Amber said.  
  
Since Katherine was hired by Grace, Will and Jack had insisted that Amber call them each uncle and Grace had insisted on being called aunt.  
  
"So it's your first day at school," Will said, getting up and helping Amber pour a bowl of cereal. "Are you excited?"  
  
"A bit," Amber said, picking up the bowl and careful walking to the table. "But I'm nervous. I'm afraid the other students will make fun of my accent."  
  
"Don't be worried," Will said, sitting down next to her. "I'm sure that they'll ask you a lot of questions about England. You'll make tons of friends today."  
  
Amber smiled and her cheeks turned slightly red. "Thank you," she said.  
  
A few minutes later, Katherine came into the room, pulling on a suit jacket. "Morning Will," she said distractedly as she poured a bowl of cereal for herself.  
  
"Hey, you look nice today," Will said.  
  
"Have to make a good impression," Katherine said.  
  
"For a client or Karen's sake?" Will asked.  
  
Katherine gave a snort of laughter and said, "If I was dressing to impress Karen, I would have gone to Barney's or wherever it is you Yorkers go for ritzy clothes."  
  
"Morning you guys," Grace said, walking into the apartment.  
  
"Hi Gracie, what are you doing here?" Will asked.  
  
"I came to escort Katherine to work," Grace said.  
  
"'Escort?'" Will asked with a grin on his face.  
  
"Oh, you know what I mean Will!" Grace said exasperatingly.  
  
"Thanks for coming Grace," Katherine said.  
  
"Will we need to walk Amber to school?" Grace asked, walking over to the kitchen and getting a cup of coffee.  
  
"No J-" Katherine started to say when the door opened.  
  
"Hello, hello people," Jack said as he walked through the apartment and  
  
grabbed the mug of coffee that Grace had just poured.  
  
"You sure you want to trust your daughter to this guy?" Will asked. "He sees one cute guy taking his niece or nephew to the school and bye-bye Jack."  
  
Katherine laughed and then got up from the table. "Okay Amber," she said. "You need to get going. Go on and grab your backpack."  
  
"Yes Mummy," Amber said. She got up and then ran to her room.  
  
"Her school lets out at three Jack," Katherine said, walking him over to the door. "Grace, is it alright if he brings Amber over to the office?"  
  
"Sure," Grace answered, sitting in the chair next to Will and reading the newspaper that Will had pushed aside.  
  
"All ready Mummy," Amber said, walking up to Jack and taking his hand.  
  
"Have a good day and do the best you can," Katherine said, she knelt down and kissed Amber on the forehead.  
  
"Have a good day too Mummy," Amber said as she and Jack walked out into  
  
the hallway and over to the elevator.  
  
~~~  
  
"What time did you say Karen usually comes?" Katherine asked.  
  
She and Grace had been at the office for an hour and a half, working together on the kitchen sketches and blueprints.  
  
"Right about," Grace said, when the office door opened. "Now."  
  
Karen walked in and sat down at her desk without a word to either Grace  
  
or Katherine.  
  
"Good morning... Karen," Katherine said slowly and apprehensively.  
  
Pulling out a bottle of red nail polish, Karen ignored the greeting and  
  
started painting her nails.  
  
Grace reached over to Katherine and squeezed her shoulder in a friendly  
  
way, it was going to be a long day. 


	6. Chapter Six: Another Source of Proof

A/N: Just to reiterate: I do not know the city of New York all that well, so I will be making a lot of stuff up about the city that I don't know already.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters.  
  
Chapter Six Another Source of Proof  
  
Will walked into Grace's office and saw that Karen and Katherine weren't there. "So they finally killed each other?" he asked jokingly.  
  
"Not funny Will," Grace said.  
  
"Okay, well where are then then?" Will asked.  
  
"Karen's on her lunch brake," Grace said. "And Katherine went back to your apartment. Amber got sick and school and Jack took her back to the apartment."  
  
"It's been a week since Kat's started to work here," Will then said. "How are things between her and Karen?"  
  
"Not good," Grace said, putting down the book of fabrics she was looking through. "Karen speaks to me, but completely ignores Kat."  
  
"If it could knock some sense into her head, I'd hit Karen with a brick," Will said, shaking his head.  
  
"Oh come on Will, you'd do that for no reason," Grace said.  
  
"Very true," Will said. "Well I stopped by to see if you want to go with me to lunch."  
  
"Sure, how about that new deli on 103rd?" Grace asked, picking up her purse.  
  
"Sounds great," Will said.  
  
~~~  
  
Karen was eating, or really drinking, lunch at an upper class bar called 'York's.'  
  
"Afternoon ma'am," a familiar voice said, coming up to her table.  
  
"Sit down and tell me what you've got G. R.," Karen said impatiently to  
  
the private investigator.  
  
"Well she was born on February 25 in England," G. R. began. "Mother gave her up for adoption."  
  
"What was the mother's name?" Karen asked.  
  
"I couldn't find that out," G. R. said.  
  
"Why not?" Karen demanded angrily.  
  
"British stick to the rules of privacy ma'am," G. R. said. "Anyway, she was adopted by the Rileys a few days after she was born."  
  
"Is that it?" Karen asked, surprised at the lack of information.  
  
"One more thing, she has an adopted daughter, Amber," G. R. said.  
  
"I need you to do one more thing concerning Ms. Riley," Karen said. "I  
  
need you to have a DNA test done on her blood and Lois Whitley's blood. Can you do that at least?"  
  
G. R. nodded and without a word got out of the booth where Karen was sitting.  
  
"Hi Kare," Jack said, coming up to her table a few minutes after G. R. had left.  
  
"Hello Poodle, come and sit with me," Karen said smiling.  
  
"You're in a good mood today," Jack said, sitting next to her. "What's  
  
the occasion."  
  
"Oh honey, I might be able to get rid of that Riley woman soon," Karen said.  
  
"What?" Jack asked, pulling back. "Why would you want to do that?"  
  
"She's been a pest for a long time now Jack," Karen said, the smile dropping off her face.  
  
"Just because she's your sister?" Jack asked.  
  
"She is not my sister Jack!" Karen said a little too loudly. "In fact- " She stopped and noticed that the other people in the bar were looking over at their table. "Outside Jackie, come on," she said, pushing him out of the booth.  
  
"What's wrong with you Karen?" Jack asked as Karen literally pushed him  
  
into her limo.  
  
"I'm just tired with you and Grace trying to tell me that that woman is  
  
my sister," Karen said. "Driver! Take us home and step on it!"  
  
"If you just spent some time with her, then you-" Jack started to say.  
  
"I've got better things to do than to spend time with her," Karen said.  
  
"And besides, I've got a way to see if she really is my sister." She then reached over to the limo's bar and took a little bottle of vodka.  
  
"What do you mean?" Jack asked suspiciously.  
  
"I've got my private investigator working on getting a DNA to see if my  
  
mother's and the Riley woman's blood match at all," Karen said, pouring the  
  
vodka into a glass with ice in it.  
  
"I can't believe you Karen," Jack said, shaking his head. "You can just take Kat's word for it that she's your sister?"  
  
Karen looked over her glass at Jack, her face expressionless.  
  
Jack leaned back in his seat and said, "So why am I going to your house?"  
  
"I need someone to talk to," Karen said, sitting next to Jack and leaning her head on his shoulder. "I can't make fun of Grace since she's always trying to get me to talk to the Riley woman."  
  
Jack sighed and placed his arm around Karen's shoulders. He loved Karen, but sometimes she was too stubborn, and this situation with Katherine was no exception. Pushing those thoughts to the side, Jack began what would turn out a whole day of gossiping with Karen.  
  
~~~  
  
"Anyone home?" Will asked, stepping into his apartment that evening.  
  
"Hi Will," Katherine said, coming out to greet him.  
  
"I took Grace out to lunch today and she told me that Amber was sick," Will said, handing Katherine a paper bag. "I bought some chicken broth for her."  
  
"Oh that's very kind of you Will," Katherine said. "Thank you very much."  
  
"You're welcome," Will said, he went to his room while Katherine went to the kitchen and put the chicken broth in a bowl.  
  
"Kat, Kat!" Jack said, coming into the apartment.  
  
"Jack, Jack!" Katherine said to him, starting to walk over to her room,  
  
bowl in her hands.  
  
"What's that?" Jack asked, motioning to the bowl.  
  
"Broth for Amber," Katherine said. "Come on and you can tell me what's  
  
the news."  
  
Jack followed her into the room, smiling. At that moment, she had sounded exactly like Karen.  
  
"Hi Uncle Jack," Amber said, sitting up in the bed.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Jack asked.  
  
"Sick," Amber said.  
  
"Here, your Uncle Will brought you some chicken broth," Katherine said,  
  
handing her the bowl. "Now be very careful with that and try not to spill."  
  
"I will Mummy," Amber said.  
  
"Hi Jack," Will said, coming into the room.  
  
"Thank you for the broth Uncle Will," Amber said.  
  
"So what did you want to tell me Jack?" Katherine asked.  
  
"Well I talked to Karen today," Jack began. "And she said that she's got a private investigator that's going to do a DNA test on your blood and her mother's blood."  
  
Katherine was silent for a long moment, she got up from the side of the bed where she was sitting and walked out to the kitchen, Jack and Will following her. "Well I can't say that I'm surprised," she said quietly, getting a glass of water. "At least now she'll see that I was telling the truth."  
  
"But maybe she'll twist the results when she tells us," Will said.  
  
Jack and Katherine stared at him, unconvinced looks on their faces.  
  
"Well she could," Will said. "And if she does, you need another source  
  
to show her that your her half-sister."  
  
"Oh my god," Katherine said suddenly. "I completely forgot! I have a letter from my biological mother that I received when my adoptive parents died."  
  
"Where is it?" Jack asked.  
  
"Unfortunately it's in my room in the Riley manor," Katherine said. "I  
  
suppose I can call and have her send it to me." Thinking intently, she walked out of the kitchen and to her bedroom.  
  
Will sighed and said, "Hopefully that letter will be enough to convince  
  
Karen."  
  
"And if not?" Jack ventured.  
  
"Don't know," Will said. "But I really would hate to find out." 


	7. Chapter Seven: Discussion on the Terrace

A/N: Special thanks to Erika for review for a second, glad you are enjoying  
  
the story and glad you liked the 'Aunt Grace, Uncle Jack and Uncle Will idea. And another special thanks to C.T. Torris, I am especially honored by your reviews because I thought that you ff 'I am Karen' was just fantastic and I think you are a great writer. So getting a review from you just made my day and I am so glad that you believe I've got the characters down (which is really amazing since I haven't seen every episode of the show). I hope that the both of you will continue reading and reviewing this!  
  
A/N #2: I made up the restaurant 'Le Asiatique', which means 'the Asian' in  
  
French.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters, nor do I own tic-tacs, which get a mention here.  
  
Chapter Seven Discussion on the Terrace  
  
For the next week and a half, the air inside Grace's office was so thick that a person would have been able to cut through it with a butter knife.  
  
Katherine and Grace, who had been informed by Will about the DNA test that was about to happen, were waiting to hear the results from Karen, and to see when the letter from England would arrive.  
  
Karen herself was eager to hear that the DNA of her mother and Katherine didn't match.  
  
~~~  
  
At the end of that week and a half, Will came into his apartment and was greeted by an uneasy Katherine. "Nothing Kat," he said before she could ask. "Only a few bills for me."  
  
"I talked to her yesterday," Katherine said sadly, sitting on the couch. "And Sara said that she sent it five days ago."  
  
"Don't worry ," Will said. "I'm sure it'll get here by tomorrow."  
  
"Did it come?" Jack asked, walking in through the open door.  
"Hi Jack," Katherine said.  
  
"Not today," Will said, throwing the mail on the table.  
  
"It'll come soon Kat, don't worry," Jack said comfortingly.  
  
Katherine got up off the couch and started pacing in front of the coffee table. "If it doesn't come within a day or two," she began. "Then it means the letter has been lost."  
  
"It will come Katherine," Will said firmly.  
  
"That's very easy for you to say Will," Katherine said, tears welling up into her eyes. "You don't have to worry about being accepted by your sibling or siblings. Excuse me." With that she turned and went into her room, slamming the door behind her.  
  
"I don't see how you can be so chummy with Karen," Will said to Jack. "The way she's treating Kat."  
  
"Well it's not like I approve of the way she's handling this," Jack said. "I have been trying to get Karen to accept Kat, but it sure isn't easy."  
  
Silence descended in the apartment until Grace opened the door and came  
  
inside. "Hi Jack," she said. "Did the letter come Will?"  
  
Will shook his head.  
  
"Poor Kat," Grace said. "It's been hell for her at the office this week."  
  
"Is that why she's not eating?" Will said.  
  
"She's not eating?" Grace and Jack said at the same time.  
  
"I cook dinner and Amber, her and I eat together, and she eats very little," Will said.  
  
"That's it," Grace said. "We're all going to go out to 'Le Asiatique' and see if we can't distract her from this whole business with Karen for a while."  
  
"Good idea Grace," Will said. He glanced over at Jack, who was smiling  
  
broadly, and said, "Yes that means you can come too."  
  
~~~  
  
"I've never had Franco-Chinese food before," Katherine said as she, Will, Grace, Jack and Amber left the restaurant. "I didn't even know that it existed actually."  
  
"But you did like it right?" Grace asked.  
  
Katherine laughed and said, "Of course I did, whatever gave you the idea that I didn't?"  
  
Will and Grace glanced at each other and remained silent, but Jack did not. "You barely ate anything," he pointed out.  
  
"I don't have that large an appetite to begin with Jack," Katherine said, looking straight ahead.  
  
"Well I guess we should all call it a night," Will said. "I've got to go to the office early tomorrow."  
  
"Okay, I'll talk to you later Will," Grace said, hugging him. "And I'll see you tomorrow at nine Kat. Night Jack, Amber."  
  
"Bye Grace," Jack said.  
  
"Good night Auntie Grace!" Amber called out.  
  
Katherine waved to Grace and then hurried over to the street to flag down a cab.  
  
"I think someone needs to talk with her," Jack said, watching Katherine  
  
raise her hand up in the air.  
  
"I'll do it," Will said, walking over to where a cab had stopped in font of Katherine. "I need to ask her about somethings."  
  
~~~  
  
At eleven thirty, Will came out of his bathroom, where he had taken a shower and changed into pajamas, and went to Katherine and Amber's room. He slowly opened the door and saw the little girl asleep in the bed, but Katherine wasn't inside. Will closed the door and walked out, checking to see if Katherine was watching T.V. She wasn't there either, and then Will saw that the door leading to the terrace was opened.  
  
"Katherine?" Will said, seeing her in one of the wooden chair that was out there.  
  
"Everything okay Will?" Katherine asked, not turning around. Her voice  
  
sounded as if it were trembling.  
  
"I was going to ask you that question," Will said, walking out and dragging the other wooden chair so it was facing her.  
  
Katherine was wearing blue silk pajamas with a Celtic knot pattern on them, and an open dark blue robe was worn over this as it was freezing on the terrace. Her face was pale, her cheekbones sticking out a little. There were tears falling down her cheeks, dripping onto her hands. "I'm just fine," she answered, trying to smile weakly.  
  
"You consider me a friend, right Katherine?" Will asked, reaching out and taking her damp hand.  
  
"Of course I do," Katherine said, looking up at him. After a few moments, she sighed and said, "It hurts, the way she has been acting towards me."  
  
Will sighed and said, "I tried to warn you when I first met you."  
  
"I didn't think that she would be capable of actually ignoring me," Katherine said.  
  
"Oh, Karen has hurt a lot of people," Will said. "Especially, me, Grace and Jack. But what she's doing to you is the worst I've ever seen."  
  
"I know now that she'll tell Grace, Jack and you that the DNA doesn't match, even if it actually does," Katherine said. "Which is why I am so anxious to get the letter, and soon."  
  
"Why are you going though this Kat?" Will said. "I mean, Karen drinks alcohol likes it's water, pops pills like they're Tic-Tacs and-"  
  
"It doesn't matter to me what her vices are," Katherine said, interrupting Will. "She is my sister, and like the old saying goes, 'Blood is thicker than water'... Or I suppose in Karen's case it should be vodka instead of water."  
  
Will laughed softly at that and squeezed her hand. "I'm worried about you Kat," he then said. "I saw you in the firm that I work at yesterday. And a friend of mine said you were updating your will."  
  
"That I was," Katherine answered, looking down at the ground.  
  
"Why?" Will asked.  
  
"I don't want to say Will, and don't make me pull out the lawyer-client  
  
privilege card," Katherine answered.  
  
"Okay, okay, fine," Will said. "I think you should go and get some rest, you've been looking really pale the past few days." He stood up and pulled  
  
Katherine out of the chair.  
  
"I hope you don't get mad," Katherine suddenly said. She wrapped her arms around Will, hugging him tightly and then burying her face in his shoulder.  
  
Will was taken by surprise for a minute, before he put an arm around Katherine and used the other to stroke her hair as her body began to shake,  
  
signifying that she was crying again.  
  
After a few minutes, Katherine pulled away from Will saying, "I'm sorry, I just need a shoulder to cry on."  
  
"It's no problem," Will said smiling. He put his hand on Katherine's back and then led her back into the apartment. When they stopped in front of the door to her and Katherine's room, he said, "You know Jack is another person  
  
who's shoulder you can cry on, if you ever need it again."  
  
Katherine smiled and said, "Thank you so much for being so supportive Will." Then she stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the cheek. "Good night," she said as she opened the door and went into her room.  
  
"Night Kat," Will said softly. "Sweet dreams." 


	8. Chapter Eight: Results and Consequences

A/N: Very agnsty chapter and some swearing. I would really appreciate reviews on this chapter!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters.  
  
Chapter Eight Results and Consequences  
  
Karen was getting dressed for work when the phone in her room rang. She ran out of her closet and picked up the phone that she had left on the bed.  
  
"Hello," she said into the receiver.  
  
"This is G. R., I've got the DNA test results," the voice on the other end said.  
  
"What is it?" Karen asked, sinking down on the bed, gripping the phone tightly.  
  
"There was a 100% match between Lois Whitley and Katherine Riley's DNA," G. R. said.  
  
Karen barely remembered pushing the off button of the phone, but the next thing she knew was that the dial tone was blaring in her ear. She breathed  
  
out slowly and then opened her mouth letting out a shrill scream of pain mixed with hysteria.  
  
So the Riley woman was right, she was her sister. Karen stared out the  
  
window and suddenly realized that even with the test results coming back positive, she could still get rid of the woman. She would resort to the one thing she knew how to do very well- lie.  
  
~~~  
  
"Good morning Karen," Grace said, sounding a little surprised. It was only eleven, and Karen rarely came at this time.  
  
"I'm sure Jackie told you about the DNA test I had done Riley?" Karen said nastily, making Katherine's last name sound like a filthy word.  
  
"I- yes, yes he did," Katherine said, taken aback for a moment at the fact that Karen was speaking to her.  
  
"Well I got the results and you, are a liar," Karen said. "You are definitely not my sister."  
  
"Karen wait a minute," Grace said. "I don't know who told you the results, but Katherine is going to be getting a letter from your mother soon."  
  
Karen just laughed and walked over to her desk and sat down.  
  
Grace turned to Katherine, who was looking pale, and whispered, "Go talk to her!"  
  
Katherine nodded and walked over to Karen's desk. "What Grace said was  
  
true Karen," she started. "I received a letter from Lois Whitely after my adoptive parents died. It says that she gave me away a few days after I was born."  
  
"Look, DNA tests don't lie Riley," Karen said, standing up.  
  
"But Karen, I am your sister why can't you just accept that!" Katherine  
  
cried.  
  
"Because I have a letter from my mother, saying the baby girl she had in England was stillborn," Karen said. "So I don't know what the hell you're trying to get by pretending to be my sister."  
  
"The letter I've got says she lied about me dying so you wouldn't hate her even more," Katherine said.  
  
Two spots of red appeared on Karen's cheeks and she raised her hand, slapping Katherine hard with the back of her hand.  
  
"Karen, what the hell are you doing!" Grace cried, running over to where Katherine was standing.  
  
"I don't know who you are, but all I know is that you are just some English brat who is insane," Karen said.  
  
Katherine, who had covered her cheek with her hand, straightened up and  
  
let her hand fall to her side. There were two distinct scratches bleeding on the cheek, made by Karen's ring.  
  
"Oh my god," Grace said, seeing the blood. "Katherine are you-"  
  
Katherine held her hand up and stared at Karen, her eyes shining brightly. "So I am insane am I?" she said. She touched two fingers to the blood and then showed it to Karen. "Do you see this Karen Walker? Do you! This blood that runs through me is the same as yours. I don't care what you say, but I know that we are sisters." She dropped her hand and then turned to Grace. "I won't be coming in on Monday, I'm going back to England. I'm sorry Grace."  
  
Without another word, she walked past Karen and out of the office.  
  
"Karen how the hell can you be so insensitive?" Grace said angrily, grabbing her arm. "She came her to try and find her family, and what she got was you hurting her."  
  
"Good," Karen said, wrenching her arm from Grace's grip. "She was nothing but a little liar and I'll be glad when she leaves." She then left the office, stopping momentarily to grab her purse and coat.  
  
~~~  
  
Katherine was stumbling down the sidewalk through the rain to Will's apartment. She kept slipping and bumping into people, unaware of anything except for the pain she felt on her cheek and in her heart. There was nothing left now for her, she had no sister, no family, only Amber, who wasn't even really her daughter.  
  
As she entered the elevator of the building Will's apartment was in, her mind cleared and she remembered the plan she had set up a few days ago. Walking into the apartment, she went straight to her room and pulled out one of the suitcases she and Amber had brought with them. Then she started packing all of her clothes very neatly, humming an Irish lullaby to herself.  
  
'Soon enough,' she thought to herself. 'This will be over and the pain  
  
will be gone.'  
  
When she had finished packing the suitcase, Katherine went over a checklist inside her head. The letter was at the office where Grace would see it and she had already talked with her lawyer, everything was ready.  
  
With a smile on her face Katherine reached into her pocket, and pulled something out.  
  
~~~  
  
Jack walked into Grace's office, and saw that she was the only one there. "Where is everyone?"  
  
"Karen got the DNA results back," Grace said. "She said they were negative. Kat tried to tell her about the letter, and Karen slapped her."  
  
"Oh my god," Jack said. "What happened next?"  
  
"Kat said that she's going back to England and then she left," Grace answered. "And awhile after that, Karen left."  
  
"I shouldn't have stopped for that cup of coffee," Jack said, pulling something out of his pocket.  
  
"I doubt that you could have done anything about what happened Jack," Grace said. Then she saw that Jack was holding a white envelope, the address in the corner said York, England. "Is that it?" she asked, already knowing the answer.  
  
Jack nodded and said, "I opened it. If I had known what it was, I wouldn't have." He handed the letter to Grace who took it out and read it over quickly. Looking over Grace's worktable, he spotted a white envelope with his name, Will's and Grace's names written on it in what was Katherine's handwriting. He reached over and picked it up. The envelope wasn't closed, and he pulled out the letter that was inside. "Oh god," he said. "Grace!"  
  
~~~  
  
Katherine always loved when her father used to show her his Swiss Army Knife. It had a lot of neat attachments, but she loved the knife blade because he used to whittle pieces of wood a lot.  
  
Now, she held her the Swiss Army Knife, the blade sticking out. She was in Will's bathroom, sitting on the edge of the bathtub with her feet inside. She pressed the knife down to her left wrist and then stopped for a moment,  
  
closing her eyes. After a while of convincing herself that this was for the best, she pressed down hard on her skin with the knife.  
  
Jack, Grace and Will ran into the apartment and to the bathroom.  
  
Grace, who was at the front of the three, saw the blood and yelled, "She's bleeding, stop her!"  
  
Jack and Will ran inside and they each grabbed an arm.  
  
"No! You have to let me finish!" Katherine screamed horribly. She began to resist, and the two men nearly lost their grip on her.  
  
"Grace, get the knife," Will yelled over Katherine's crying and wailing. He was holding her right arm and was keeping it steady so Grace wouldn't get cut.  
  
"Oh god Will, I think I'm going to be sick," Jack said as Grace went over to them and pulled the knife out of Katherine's grip. Katherine's blood was getting on to Jack's hands, face and shirt as she was struggling.  
  
"Don't think about it Jack," Will snapped angrily. "Grace, get-"  
  
"I've got alcohol and gauze," Grace said, interrupting him.  
  
"Try and clean her up," Will said. "We'll hold her as still as we can."  
  
Grace went up to Katherine and wrapped a towel tightly around her left wrist to stop the bleeding. After a few moments, she took the towel off slowly and saw that the bleeding had stopped. She then went and grabbed a washcloth which she then poured alcohol on. She walked to Katherine and said, "I hope you guys have a good grip on her," as a warning. Then she reached over and  
  
started to clean up the blood on Katherine's wrist.  
  
When the alcohol soaked washcloth touched the wound, Katherine began to  
  
yell incoherently. Eventually, she began to scream actual words. "Why? Why? Mummy!" And finally, when Grace had finished cleaning the wound she screamed, "Karen, why!" and she wrenched her left shoulder upwards. She then collapsed back against Jack and Will, sobbing softly.  
  
"What's wrong with her" Jack said out loud, looking scared.  
  
"Grace you better bring that washcloth back," Will said.  
  
There was another cut on Katherine's arm as there was blood seeping onto the light blue blouse she was wearing.  
  
"Jack help me take her blouse off," Will said, motioning for Grace to take his place. He saw the expression on Jack's face and said, "Come on Jack, she's got a wife beater on underneath." He then unbuttoned the blouse and with Jack's help pulled it off.  
  
"Oh my god," Jack said.  
  
Grace gasped and Will shook his head sadly.  
  
All over Katherine's arms were scars from other cuts that she had inflicted on herself. There was a long cut below her left wrist that looked like it had just started healing when Katherine had wrenched her arm upward.  
  
As Grace stared cleaning the second cut, Jack felt the anger rising in him towards Karen. She needed to be told what her stubborn refusal had done. He decided then that he would take the letter to Karen and show her that Katherine had been telling the truth. As soon as they were done with Katherine, Jack would leave immediately.  
  
~~~  
  
Grace helped Katherine in a pair of plaid pajama pants and a long sleeve shirt that she had found in the packed suitcase. Then Jack and Will helped  
  
Katherine walk over to her and Amber's room.  
  
Once she was settled under the covers, Jack left the room and walked over to where Grace's jacket was on the couch.  
  
"What are you doing Jack?" Will asked, coming out of the bedroom.  
  
"I'm going to Karen's," Jack said with a snarl, taking the letter out of a jacket pocket. "I'm taking the damn letter and pounding some sense into her stubborn head." His expression softened a little and he asked, "How is Kat?"  
  
"She'll be alright," Will answered. "I'm not a doctor, but the cut isn't too deep. It looks like we got here just in time."  
  
"Jack," Grace said. "Kat said she doesn't want Amber to know what happened. Think you can pick her up at school?"  
  
"I'll go to Karen's first," Jack answered. "And then get Amber." He walked over to the door and opened it.  
  
"Better keep her at your apartment tonight," Will said. "I don't think  
  
Amber should see Kat."  
  
Jack nodded and then left the apartment, walking over to the elevator.  
  
Inside his mind, he was going over what he was going to say what needed to be said and how he was going to say it. 


	9. Chapter Nine: Friend’s Comfort

A/N: I should have mentioned this at the start of the story, but I forgot.  
  
Anyway, I am not including Leo in this because I have seen very little of him, and to tell you the truth, I hate his character (sorry to those who like him).  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters.  
  
Chapter Nine Friend's Comfort  
  
Jack walked toward Karen's penthouse, unaware of the stares people were  
  
giving him because of the blood on his face and shirt. He burst through the front door of the penthouse once a servant had opened the door for him. "Where is she?" he asked the startled woman.  
  
"Sh-she is in her room," the maid stammered.  
  
Jack strode past her and went up the stairs to Karen's room. He walked  
  
inside and saw that Karen was sitting on the window seat of the largest window of the room.  
  
"Poodle, what are you doing here?" Karen asked without turning.  
  
"Do you know what you've done Karen?" Jack retorted angrily.  
  
Karen turned around, and she immediately saw the blood on his face. "Oh Jackie, are you hurt?" she asked worriedly.  
  
"Look at this Karen, and tell me that Kat isn't your sister," Jack said. He took out the letter from his jacket pocket and threw it at Karen.  
  
Karen took out the letter and looked down at the signature on the bottom. It read Lois Whitley and she immediately recognized it as her mother's handwriting. Karen read over the letter quickly and then looked up at Jack. "Oh god," she murmured.  
  
"Now look at this letter," Jack said, taking another piece of paper from his pocket and giving it to Karen.  
  
She unfolded it and started to read.  
  
'Dear Will, Grace and Jack,  
  
You will have found out by now that Karen twisted the DNA results so that I am not her sister. I cannot stay here, being treated so meanly by her, and I cannot return to England. The only way out for me is the course that I have followed.  
  
Will, I am leaving Amber in your care, please take good care of her and  
  
see that she understands why I had to do this. You were a great friend and  
  
very generous to allow my daughter and I to stay with you. I can never repay you for all you have done for me, but if you contact my sister-in-law, Sara Riley, then she will give you the necessary money for Amber's education, which I hope will help you.  
  
Grace, we became fast friends after we met, and you also stayed on my side during this argument with Karen, and for that I thank you greatly. Do not hold what I have done against Karen though, she was your friend before I was, and I would not want my death to end the friendship that the two of you had.  
  
Jack, I knew immediately that there was something special about you when I first met you. Not the fact that you were gay, but I think it was because you had the guts to go against Karen, your best friend, and believe me, a stranger. I would like you to help Will with Amber in any way that you can, and as I told Grace, do not let your friendship with Karen to break because of me.  
  
There is one more favor that I would ask of you all. Tell Karen that she was not the main cause of my suicide, but the last straw that ended my resolve to remain on this earth. Make sure that she treats her niece better than she ever treated me.  
  
Good bye my friends, I will be gone soon and I will never trouble you again.  
  
Katherine Emma Riley'  
  
Karen remained motionless after she finished reading the suicide note.  
  
After a few moments she whispered, "How did she..."  
  
"She was going to cut her wrists," Jack said, feeling the anger towards  
  
Karen ebb away slowly. "Will and I managed to stop her from doing any real  
  
damage. She was resting when I left Will's apartment."  
  
"You blame me, don't you Jack?" Karen asked looking up at him.  
  
Jack walked over to her and pulled her up and into a hug. "I am angry with you Kare," he said, holding her tightly. "But I know that you had your reasons for denying Kat."  
  
Karen pulled away from Jack and said, "She's my mother's daughter."  
  
"I thought you and your mom were getting along better a-" Jack began.  
  
"Don't you understand Jack, I hate my mom!" Karen screamed.  
  
"Kare, she wasn't raised by your mom, so she won't be like her," Jack pointed out quietly. "She's really nice and she cares a lot about you Karen."  
  
The tears that Karen had tried to hold back, fell down her cheeks and she almost threw herself at Jack. She wrapped her arms around him and started crying heavily.  
  
Jack sighed in pity and held Karen close to him, it was the only thing he could do for her at this point. After what seemed like forever, he looked over at the clock hanging on the wall and saw that it was time for him to get Amber at her school. "Kare?" he said softly, looking down.  
  
"What is it?" Karen asked, looking up at him.  
  
"I have to get Amber at school," Jack said.  
  
"Could you... come back here after that?" Karen asked hesitatingly.  
  
"Yes, but I'm going to have to bring Amber with me," Jack answered. "Kat doesn't want Amber to see her."  
  
"Bring her then," Karen said, a determined look on her face. "She can stay here if she wants to tonight."  
  
Jack smiled and then let go of Karen, turning to leave.  
  
"Jackie, you might want to wash up," Karen said, stopping him.  
  
"Oh, right," Jack said, looking down at his hands. "I'll just go to my  
  
apartment. I'll be back soon."  
  
"Thank you poodle," Karen said, smiling at him.  
  
Jack smiled back at her and then left the room.  
  
~~~  
  
"Hey Kat," Grace said, walking into the room with a tray in her hands.  
  
"Do you think you could eat something?"  
  
"I think that I should," Katherine said softly. She sat up in bed, propping her pillow up behind her back.  
  
"Will made some soup," Grace said. "It's cold out there."  
  
"Yes, I know," Katherine said as Grace placed the tray on her lap. "I walked through the rain and wind coming back here from the office."  
  
"That's a long ways from the office," Grace said.  
  
"I barely noticed it," Katherine said, absent-mindedly rubbing the gauze on her wrist.  
  
"Those scars Kat," Grace began to say. "Where-"  
  
"I did those myself," Katherine said, interrupting her.  
  
"Why?" Will asked from the doorway.  
  
"I started doing that when I first started to look for Karen two years ago," Katherine said. "I discovered by accident, that if I cut myself, the pain from the wound would make me forget about my adopted parents who had just died, the fact that my adoptive brother kicked me out of the family manor, and that the search for my half sister was turning out to be difficult."  
  
Grace's eyes filled with tears and she put her hand on Katherine's upper arm.  
  
"Kat," Will said. "You know you're going to need to see a psychiatrist  
  
right?"  
  
"Yes, I am quite aware of that," Katherine answered. "I'll wait until I know whether Karen will accept me or not. And if not I... I..." Her eyes suddenly welled up with tears and she covered her face with her hands.  
  
Will hurried into the room and took the tray off of Katherine's lap and  
  
moved it onto the night stand.  
  
Grace quickly wrapped and arm around Kat, and then Will did the same sitting on the other side of the bed.  
  
"It'll turn out okay," Grace said. "Jack took the letter from England to Karen and I'm sure she'll come tomorrow to patch things up with you."  
  
Katherine nodded and then smiled softly. "I've a strange request for you two," she said, blushing slightly. "I don't want to be alone tonight-"  
  
"We'll have a little sleepover in here then," Will said quickly. "Just  
  
as long as we agree on no hanky-panky."  
  
Katherine laughed loudly at that one, making Will and Grace smile at one another.  
  
"Well I'm going to get ready for the sleepover," Will said, squeezing Katherine's shoulder and getting up off the bed.  
  
"I need to go and get some stuff from my place," Grace said. "Will you  
  
be okay by yourself Kat?"  
  
"I'll be fine, go on both of you!" Katherine said, waving her right hand and smiling.  
  
~~~  
  
Amber was clutching Jack's hand very tightly, nervous at the prospect of going to her Aunt Karen's house and spending the night there. "Is she going to be mean to me again?" Amber asked softly.  
  
"Nope, I'll make sure that she doesn't," Jack said. They arrived at the penthouse and were let inside by another maid.  
  
"Miss. Karen is in the media room," the maid said to them.  
  
"This is a big house," Amber said, looking around her.  
  
"Wait till you see the video games Karen has," Jack said, leading Amber  
  
to the media room.  
  
"Hi poodle," Karen said, standing up from the window seat and hugging him tightly. "Hello Amber," she said cautiously to the little girl.  
  
"Hullo, A-auntie Karen," Amber said. "Thank you for letting me stay here tonight."  
  
Karen smiled and then pulled the little girl to her, wrapping her in a hug.  
  
Jack looked at the tableau in front of him and smiled, things were going to be all right from now on.  
  
~~~  
  
"Who's feet are those?" Grace asked. "They're freezing!"  
  
"Can't be mine," Katherine said simply.  
  
"Sorry Gracie," Will said.  
  
The three of them were crowded in the bed in Amber and Katherine's room. Grace on Katherine's left and Will on the right.  
  
Katherine yawned and said, "Thanks for doing this guys."  
  
"No problem," Grace said.  
  
"That's what friends are for Kat," Will said.  
  
"You guys are the best mates I've ever had," Katherine said, smiling.  
  
"Goodnight Kat," Will and Grace then said.  
  
"'Night Will, Gracie," Kat replied. She closed her eyes, and found herself drifting off to sleep quickly.  
  
~~~  
  
"So you and Amber hit it off pretty well," Jack said.  
  
"She's a nice kid," Karen said. She and Jack were in her bed, both of them fully clothed and burrowed under the covers as it was cold.  
  
"Are you going to Will's tomorrow?" Jack asked, turning on his side and  
  
facing her.  
  
"I am," Karen said. "I just hope that she can forgive me for how mean I've been to her."  
  
"She will," Jack said, then he yawned and said, "Goodnight Kare. I love you."  
  
"I love you too Jackie," Karen said, turning and kissing his cheek. "Good night."  
  
~~~  
  
And so the two sisters slept in the comfort of having their best friends near them. But their minds were on the next day, when they would meet and have to work at fixing things up between them. 


	10. Chapter Ten: Sister's Acceptance

A/N: Well here it is, the last chapter. I just want to thank everyone who reviwed this story here in the past (hopefully they'll come back soon :). Also, I would greatly appreciate it if my readers could give me a review of the whole story, and things like your favourite parts and stuff like that. Thanks in advance for the readers who do that!  
  
A/N #2: This chapter kind of close up some stuff, and it also conviniently opens up some things that I will adress in the sequel which I will hopefully be able to post soon. And remember folks, the sequel to this will have JACK AND KAREN GETTING TOGETHER (---for those of you who might have forgotten ;). Another thing I'd like to mention, the epilogue here isn't much, just a way for me to wind up the story.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Will and Grace or its characters.  
  
Chapter Ten Sister's Acceptance  
  
"Are you sure you'll be okay by yourself Kat?" Will asked.  
  
"That's the third time you've asked that Will, and for the third time, yes, I shall be fine," Katherine asked.  
  
Grace glanced at Will and shrugged.  
  
"I won't try anything, I promise," Katherine then said.  
  
"Okay Kat," Will said. "You have the number to my office and my cellphone right?"  
  
"Yes, and I've the number to Grace's office," Katherine answered. "I'll call if I need anything."  
  
"I'm going to get going then," Will said. "Bye you guys."  
  
"I would stay Kat, except I've got to go over to the Robson apartment today," Grace said.  
  
"I know," Katherine said. "I'll be okay though, I'll just rest and get  
  
some reading done."  
  
"Alright," Grace said, getting up from the couch and picking up her coat. "I'll se you later."  
  
"Bye Gracie," Katherine called as she left.  
  
~~~  
  
Karen woke up at ten thirty and discovered that Jack was gone. She got  
  
out of the bed and hurriedly changed into a skirt and blouse before going downstairs. "Rosario," she said to the maid. "Where's Jack."  
  
"He took little Amber to school," Rosario answered. "And he said he would be back soon."  
  
Karen nodded and decided to go back to her room and watch t.v. until Jack came back. She was at the stairs when she heard the front door open and Jack called out to her.  
  
"Let's go Kare and stop for some breakfast," he said.  
  
"Are you going to buy poodle?" Karen asked.  
  
"Oh Kare, you know I'd buy you a trip to the Fiji islands, but I just don't have the money," Jack answered, giving her his 'puppy dog' look.  
  
Karen sighed and said, "Let me get my coat and then we'll go Jackie."  
  
~~~  
  
Jack opened the door to Will's apartment and let Karen walk inside first. "Kat, are you here?"  
  
"Hi Jack, I'm out on the terrace," Katherine called out.  
  
Karen stopped dead in her tracks and turned to Jack. "I'm scared Jackie," she said.  
  
"Just go out there and tell her that you believe her," Jack said, walking up to her and giving her a quick hug.  
  
"Thanks poodle," Karen said, kissing him on the cheek. She turned around and walked over to the terrace. She stood in the doorway for a moment, looking down at Katherine. Obviously she and Katherine didn't look alike, but Karen had noticed that they both had the same nose and chin, from their mother. "Hey," she said quietly.  
  
Katherine looked up and was a little surprised to see Karen in the doorway. "Oh, hello Karen," she said softly. "Come and sit, please."  
  
Karen walked onto the terrace and went over to the wooden chair that was in front of Katherine. "What are you writing?" she asked, noticing the pad of paper and pencil in her hands.  
  
"Oh, I'm not writing," Katherine answered smiling. "I've been drawing."  
  
Karen nodded and then she cleared her throat. She wasn't sure how to begin, so she remained quiet, trying to think of what to say first.  
  
"Did Jack show you the letter from your mother?" Katherine suddenly asked.  
  
"Yeah," Karen said, relieved that Katherine had started. "He did. And I do believe you now Katherine."  
  
"Why didn't you believe me before?" Katherine asked softly.  
  
"I never had a close relationship with our mom," Karen answered. "And for some reason I thought that you would be like her."  
  
"Oh," Katherine said, seeming to be at a loss for words for a moment. She was pleased that Karen had said, 'our mom,' instead of 'my mom.' "Well, since I have no idea what she is like, I can assure you that it is not likely that I am like her," she said.  
  
"So," Karen said, smiling. "I guess we're sisters then."  
  
"Yes, I suppose we are," Katherine said. She stood up from her chair and waited for Karen to do the same. "Thank you for finally believing me Karen," she said. Then she put her arms around Karen and gave her a long hug.  
  
Karen was a little taken back by the hug, but then she put her own arms  
  
around Katherine's shoulders and returned the hug.  
  
"Are you guys alright?" Jack said, coming onto the terrace. He saw the  
  
two embracing and said, "Oh, sorry. It was too quiet and I thought Karen might have thrown you over the side Kat."  
  
Karen and Katherine pulled apart and they both started laughing.  
  
"Are you sure you're alright?" Jack asked, noticing the tears in both pairs of eyes.  
  
"We'll be fine," Karen said.  
  
"Yes, we shall," Katherine said, echoing her sister.  
  
"Well why don't you make some coffee Kat and we can go inside were it's  
  
warm!" Jack said.  
  
Katherine laughed and walked passed Jack and into the apartment.  
  
"See, I told you she would forgive you Kare," Jack said to Karen.  
  
"I didn't think it would be that easy," Karen said. "Maybe she's not really s-"  
  
"Karen, don't start acting paranoid," Jack said, scolding her lightly.  
  
"Come on, let's go inside. Oh, and you two should do something together one of these days."  
  
"But Jack-" Karen began.  
  
"No buts Kare," Jack said. "You need to make it up to her and that's the best way to do it."  
  
Karen sighed and then said, "Alright, maybe I can get her to go shopping for some new clothes for her."  
  
"Sounds good," Jack said, taking Karen's arm. "Now go ask her what she  
  
thinks."  
  
~~~  
  
Epilogue Two Weeks Later  
  
"Good morning Gracie," Katherine said, walking into Grace's office.  
  
"Hi Kat," Grace said. She looked up and saw the outfit that Katherine was wearing. "Nice blouse," she said. "Is it one that Karen bought you?"  
  
"Yes, one of the few items that we both actually agreed upon on that horrid shopping day," Katherine answered grimacing at the memory.  
  
Grace laughed and said, "You never really told us much about what happened that day. And Karen hasn't said anything either."  
  
"Well, let's just say that on the ride back home in the limo, I was almost ready to drink some scotch," Katherine said.  
  
"And I almost got you to Kath," a voice said behind the two women.  
  
"It was horrible for you to force the liquor on me when I was so tired Kare," Katherine said, turning around and smiling at her sister.  
  
"Wow, you actually wore one of the outfits I bought for you," Karen said, walking over to Katherine and looking at the blouse. "I think that it would have been better in the red color though."  
  
Katherine just shook her head and laughed softly. "Are you ready for the park though?" she then asked.  
  
"I guess," Karen said, walking back to her desk and sitting down.  
  
"Oh, about that Kat," Grace said. "I can't go, Will and I are going to  
  
see 'Matchstick Men' at three."  
  
"That's quite alright," Katherine said.  
  
"Okay, well then, let's get working," Grace said, clapping her hands together.  
  
~~~  
  
At two fifteen, there was a noise outside the office that sounded like someone was galloping up the stairs.  
  
"That Jack?" Grace said, looking down at her watch.  
  
"Good afternoon, fair ladies of Grace Adler designs," Jack said, coming  
  
into the office, Amber on his back.  
  
"Glad to see you made it Jack," Katherine said.  
  
Jack knelt down and let Amber let go of him. She ran to Katherine and gave her a hug. "We going down to the park Mummy?"  
  
"If your Aunt Karen is ready, we are," Katherine said.  
  
Sighing, Karen stood up and pulled on her coat. "Let's get out of here," she said.  
  
"Bye you guys, have fun!" Grace called after the four of them as they went out of the office.  
  
~~~  
  
Later that night, Karen, Jack, Katherine and Amber were at Karen's penthouse. They were in the media room, Jack and Amber playing video games.  
  
"Why do you still have the game system?" Katherine asked.  
  
"My stepkids had another one at their mom's, so they just left it here," Karen answered, eating an olive from her martini.  
  
"You know Kare, I would hate to think of the condition your liver is in  
  
right now," Katherine said suddenly.  
  
Jack looked over at Karen with a surprised look on his face.  
  
"Oh honey," Karen said, waving a hand in the air. "Don't try and preach to me. A lot of people tried that and , obviously it didn't work. I mean,  
  
the only way I'd stop is if I was pregnant, and that's not going to happen any time soon."  
  
"Yes," Katherine said, glancing over at Jack, who's attention had returned to the video game. "Well it's getting late and Amber has school tomorrow." Katherine stood up from the couch she was sitting on.  
  
Amber put down the video game controller and went over to where Karen was sitting. "Thank you for letting me play Auntie Karen," she said. Then she  
  
stood on her tip toes and gave Karen a small kiss on the cheek.  
  
"You're welcome Amber," Karen said, ruffling the girl's black hair slightly. "And I'll be picking you up after school tomorrow and we'll go clothes shopping."  
  
"Thank you Auntie!" Amber said excitedly. Then she looked over at her mother and asked, "Is it all right Mummy?"  
  
"It is," Katherine answered. "But please remember Kare, she's only six  
  
years old and she does wear a uniform at her school."  
  
"Don't worry honey," Karen said, putting her martini down and getting up. "I'll see you at the office tomorrow."  
  
"Good night Kare," Katherine said.  
  
The two sisters hugged quickly, and then Amber and Katherine left the room.  
  
Jack and Karen looked at each other for a moment before Karen spoke, "I  
  
never really thanked you Jackie"  
  
"You don't have to," Jack said. "I was just being a friend because... 'That's what friends are for!'" he said, singing the last part.  
  
Karen rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. "Well thank you anyway poodle."  
  
"Lunch tomorrow?" Jack asked.  
  
"Like always," Karen answered.  
  
"Good night Karebear," Jack said, kissing her cheek. Then he left the room and went to join Katherine and Amber in the limo for the ride home.  
  
After he had left, Karen at back down in her chair and picked up her martini, but she didn't drink it. She spent a long time in the armchair that night, thinking over her sister and another person who had been on her mind a lot lately- Jack.  
  
~~~  
  
The ride back to 155 Riverside was quiet as Amber quickly fell asleep while she was sitting next to Jack. The girl was now sitting on his lap and her head was resting on his shoulder.  
  
"Do you want me to take her?" Katherine asked Jack.  
  
"No, it's okay," Jack said. "She's a beautiful girl."  
  
"Yes, that she is," Katherine said, agreeing.  
  
"She's not yours though, is she?" Jack asked quietly.  
  
"I adopted her," Katherine said. "My best friend in York died when she  
  
gave birth to Amber, and in her will, she left Amber to me."  
  
"Does Amber know?" Jack asked.  
  
"She does," Katherine said. "She's an incredibly smart girl, and guessed a few months ago that her black hair didn't come from my family. Jack, may I ask you something?"  
  
Jack looked up at Katherine, surprised at the quick change of subjects.  
  
"Yeah, sure," he answered.  
  
"Would you ever want to have a child of your own?" Katherine asked. "And I don't mean by adoption."  
  
"Well, sure, if it was as wonderful as Amb, then yes," Jack answered.  
  
Katherine smiled knowingly and then turned to look out the window. "We're home," she said.  
  
Inside the apartment building, Jack insisted on carrying Amber up to Will's apartment.  
  
"So how was the park?" Will asked when Katherine had entered the apartment.  
  
"Shh, Katherine said, putting a finger to her lips and then stepping aside so Jack could walk in.  
  
"Want me to take her into your room?" Jack asked.  
  
"Give her to me, I'll change her into her nightclothes," Katherine said, taking the still sleeping Amber from Jack.  
  
"So how did everything go today?" Will asked Jack when Katherine had left.  
  
"Pretty good," Jack said, going to the refrigerator and grabbing a bottle of mineral water. "Karen wasn't too happy about being in the park, but she  
  
and Kat got along pretty well."  
  
"She really wasn't happy about the zoo," Katherine said, coming into the room.  
  
"Yeah, she looked really out of place with her fur coat," Jack said, smiling at the memory. "I'm going to go. See you guys tomorrow."  
  
"Good night Jack," Katherine said.  
  
"Night," Will said.  
  
When Jack had left Karen quickly made a cup of tea and sat at the table  
  
next to Will. "You've the crossword Will?"  
  
"As I always do," Will answered. He pulled out a piece of newspaper and grabbed a pen.  
  
This was a nightly ritual for both of them, ever since Katherine had explained to Will that she and her adoptive father had done this with the London Times crossword puzzle. Will had offered to share the crossword puzzle from the New York Times with her.  
  
An hour later, Katherine yawned and said, "Well I best get to bed."  
  
"Yeah, I'm going to turn in too," Will said. He got up from the table and put the pen and newspaper away. "So everything turned out great for you."  
  
Katherine laughed and said, "Of course it is, why do you say that?"  
  
"Just making sure," Will said.  
  
"I'm not going to do anything as stupid as that again Will," Katherine said, touching the large band-aid on her wrist that had replaced the gauze.  
  
"Anyway," she said as they walked to their rooms, "I've my daughter, my three best friends and my sister who isn't treating me like a stranger. I'ven't a reason to try and kill myself again."  
  
"You put things in perspective so well," Will said.  
  
"Thank you kind sir," Katherine said, smiling and give a half bow.  
  
Will laughed and said, "Good night Kat."  
  
"Night Will, sweet dreams," Katherine said, going over and hugging him.  
  
The two parted and went into their separate rooms, resigning themselves  
  
to the inevitable slumber that eluded their other friends that night, Karen and Jack.  
  
The End 


End file.
